CENTRAL NEW YORK – Rarely since it has gone to a fall schedule has the Jordan-Elbridge girls volleyball team proved relevant in terms of pursuing an Section III championship.
This has changed in 2024, though, and the Eagles were at 11-4 when it traveled to face undefeated Bishop Grimes last Tuesday night, unable to overcome a slow start in a three-set defeat to the Cobras.
Grimes prevailed 25-18, 25-15, 25-22 and moved to 12-0 behind Ava Christodoulou’s 33 assists, the passes often going to Kayla Duenkel, who had 17 kills, and Riley Abernethy, who got 10 kills.
On the Eagles’ side, Sydney Parsons led with six kills, while Zoie Karcz had 11 assists. Defensively, Isabella Jay managed 13 digs, with Claire Brown and Brooke Chiaramonte earning seven digs apiece.
Those struggles continued for J-E Thursday as it lost to LaFayette in three sets, though in this case every set was a tight one, especially the second, in a 25-22, 29-27, 25-21 decision.
Karcz contributed 16 assists, five kills and nine digs, while Chiaramonte gained 11 assists and seven digs. Abby DelFavero led the front line with nine kills and Brenna Tubbert earned six kills, Jay getting 13 digs and Brown eight digs.
Bishop Ludden took its own 25-12, 25-16, 25-22 defeat to LaFayette last Tuesday Abby Mossotti and Jaylianna Pascarella each got five kills, Mossotti adding five aces. Sophia Rivera got 10 digs to go with four assists and four aces. Grace Hilton added 14 digs.
This turned on Thursday with Ludden splitting the first two sets against Institute of Technology Central but then running away in the third set and hanging on in the fourth to win it 25-12, 17-25, 25-17, 26-24.
Natalie Testa had six assists and Rivera five assists while matching Mossotti’s three aces. Abby Reynolds led the Gaelic Knights with five kills, Pascarella earning four kills and Tiz’Ariah Billue three kills as Hilton earned six digs.
West Genesee, which has hovered around the .500 mark all season, met Liverpool last Tuesday for the second time in the regular season after getting swept by the Warriors in September.
Here, Celia Spicer put up 11 kills and Norah Emery got nine kills, with Bella Vallely adding five kills and Ella Camacho four kills. Eliana Becker passed to all of them earning 32 assists, adding eight digs. Hollis Pfeiffer led the team with 14 digs and Sidney Hamilton gained 11 digs.
WG followed this Thursday by sweeping Henninger 25-6, 25-9, 25-15 on Thursday night. Four different players – Peiffer, Becker, Hamilton and Aliana Dudzinski – earned five aces apiece and the Wildcats had 23 overall, Becker tacking on 19 assists as Camacho led with five kills. Dudzinski and Vallely had four kills apiece and Vallely added three blocks.
Even bigger for the Wildcats was a 25-12, 25-20, 25-19 win over Fulton a night later. Dudzinski had nine kills, Vallely adding six kills as Emery and Camacho had five kills apiece and Becker gained 30 assists. Hamilton got 11 digs to pace WG’s defense, Izzy Morrell adding seven digs and Lizzie Dunham six digs.
